No, this is not a message specifically for Justice Hog. Instead it's about the TV series Law & Order which in my opinion is the best police drama of all time.

It's been on the air for 14 years and the first half hour deals with the police investigation of a case, and the second half hour deals with the district attorney's prosecution. It's exctremely well written, and from what I know of the law is about as accurate as a television show can be.

Anyway, the real reason for this post is that a fan favorite for 11 years Jerry Orbach (as Detective Lennie Briscoe) has retired from the show (although he will be back as the same character in a limited role in another Law & Order spinoff "Trial by Jury" next season) I was really hoping that during last night's season finale we would get a glimpse of the actor to take his place on the show... no such luck.

So I submitt to you, fans of the show (or anyone really with knowledge of actors) to drop some names or rumors here about who will be cast to be Jessie L. Martin (Detective Ed Green)'s partner for next season.

I mean, can they really keep this under wraps all summer? Do they already have a name? Will there be a television movie this summer that will bring the new detective into the fold?

Though there is nothing official on the topic (I thought of this one on my own, as some of you may have) that since Sex in the City has ended that perhaps Chris Noth (Mr. Big/John, Detective Mike Logan) could return to the cast. He was a major character for the first 5 years of the show, and though he left on bad terms there is room in the storyline for Logan to return. He even did a TV movie in 1998 for the series.

But the problem COULD be that he is too much like Detective Green. Perhaps an older and wiser Logan would have some more restraint?

Awwww, this is all pretty moot now. They announced Dennis Farina as the replacement for Briscoe. He's the guy who played Cousin Avi in "Snatch" and he was actually once a policeman in Chicago! Should be a fine addition.

I asked this in another thread, but it's better to have it here I guess.

What do you think of Dennis Farina being the replacement for Briscoe? He's 60, but that's still 9 years younger than Orbach and he's actually an ex-police officer! I think he ought to be a fine choice, although I WAS hoping that now that Sex in the City's run is over that Chris Noth would come back to the cast. Without Detective Mike Logan that show would have never made it off the ground in the early 90's.

How cool would an Ed Green/Mike Logan team be? Instead of bad cop/good cop it would be bad cop/bad cop every interrogation! But maybe that's the reason they can't work together, very similar. Although I think an older wiser Logan would be calmed down...

I like CI because it is Holmes-like... I have the first season on DVD and I can tell ya I have watched it several times. I have the original season of the regular L&O as well, and I thought the original two actors, Noth and .. I can't remember his name were the best.

I personally don't know who you are talking about as Orbach's replacement. I would love to see a number of guys step in and take his place. I personally think that the guy who plays Anthony Soprano could do it very well - see The Castle if you don't believe he can play different roles well.

I like Orbach, and I hope his replacement doesn't come in and try to reinterpret anything.

As for Robert Goren, you do know that he was in Men in Black, right? The guy taken over by the alien in the first part? The Edgar suit?

Rich in Roanoke
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Let others hail the rising sun:
I bow to that whose course is run

(George Dundza I believe was the name of the actor who played Max Greevy. My cousin Russ has the Law and Order encyclopedia memorized and some of it rubs off on me, haha)

The guy who is Orbach's replacement was J-Lo's dad in Out of Sight, Cousin Avi in Snatch, and Bones in Get Shorty... if that doesn't help here's a link to some of his other stuff: (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001199/)

He was actually a policeman in Chicago, so that ought to help him in this role. Hopefully he won't carry that old .38 revolver that Briscoe had, that was a little TOO old school... even the most grizzled old policemen carry automatics nowadays... though I think that would have been a funny side plot to see Briscoe get an automatic, and then like be too uncomfortable with it so he kept it in his glove box all the time and still used his .38.

And yes, I knew Vincent D'Onofrio was in Men in Black, I have my finger on the pulse of Hollywood! (not really, the Internet Movie Database is like the "2nd" best site ever, haha)